President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday he was confident Ukraine would eventually join NATO after the alliance said the Russian-invaded country had an "irreversible" path to membership.
"We have strong wording regarding the irreversibility of Ukraine's movement towards NATO. Every step truly brings us closer to membership," Zelensky told a news conference at a NATO summit alongside the alliance's chief Jens Stoltenberg.
"We are doing and will continue to do everything to ensure that the day comes when Ukraine is invited and becomes a NATO member, and I am confident we will achieve this," he said.
Zelensky's reaction was significantly warmer than a year ago at the NATO summit in Lithuania where he was visibly upset that there was not a firmer promise on membership.
NATO, formed in the Cold War, is a collective defense pact in which an attack on one ally is an attack on all.
The United States and Germany have led concerns about quickly bringing Ukraine into NATO, believing it would effectively put them at war with nuclear-armed Russia.
A declaration issued Wednesday at the 75th anniversary NATO summit in Washington said leaders supported Ukraine on "its irreversible path to full Euro-Atlantic integration, including NATO membership."
Russian President Vladimir Putin has cited Ukraine's NATO aspirations as a reason to attack the former Soviet republic, rejecting the idea that the country has a separate historical identity.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
The Women Safety Emergency
US Welcomes India's Engagement In War Between Russia, Ukraine Ukrainian Troops Moving Further In Russia's Kursk, Says Zelensky Zelensky Says Ukraine Controls 74 Russian Settlements 150 mg Semen In Kolkata Doctor's Body, Suspect Gang-Rape: Parents To Court 2 French Rafale Jets Collide Mid-Air, Instructor, Pilot Missing Vandalism At Kolkata Hospital Where Doctor Was Raped, Tear Gas Fired Taylor Swift To Return To Stage For Eras Tour After Vienna Attack Plot "140 Crore Indians Worried About Safety Of Hindus In Bangladesh": PM Modi G20 Nations Couldn't Do, India Did, Met Paris Accord Target Before Time: PM Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.